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| Energy CS Opiyo Wandayi |
Energy Cabinet Secretary (CS) Opiyo Wandayi has assured Kenyans that electricity deals will come down after his ministry signed a deal to construct new power transmission lines with Indian firm Adani Group. Energy CS Opiyo Wandayi said electricity costs will be cheaper. How new transmission lines will benefit Kenyans Wandayi explained that building new power lines will reduce system losses, noting that increased power generation and the need to connect new homes triggered the upgrading of the networks. He said reduced system losses would eventually reduce the cost of electricity and blackouts.
The CS revealed ageing electricity transmission networks led to frequent blackouts and increased the cost of power in Kenya. “The improved infrastructure that will come as a result of the execution of this project by KETRACO and Adani will help us address one of the biggest challenges the sector faces – the technical and commercial losses stand at 24%, which is not sustainable,” he spoke in Naivasha, on Thursday, October 17. Why govt will compensate Kenyans KETRACO announced that the government will compensate Kenyans who will be affected by the loss of assets and structures in the construction of new power transmission lines. It also reiterated that affected persons would be compensated for any loss of business or income.
The state agency noted that compensation shall be full, prompt and just, with all persons displaced by the project being fully resettled. What’s Kenya’s power transmission expansion plan? The Adani Energy Solutions deal came as KETRACO leveraged its Transmission Master Plan 2023-2042, which outlines the necessity for 5,672 kilometres of new high-voltage lines. The plan estimated the system peak demand to increase from the 2,149MW recorded in 2022 (the base year) to 6,093MW in 2042. KETRACO noted that electricity consumption was expected to rise from 12,985GWh in 2022 to 36,291GWh in the reference scenario, 61,523 GWh in the vision scenario and 31,506GWh in the low scenario by 2042. This followed a similar controversial lease deal between the sister company Adani Airport Holdings and Kenya Airports Authority (KAA).
by Japhet Ruto